Improvement in reed-organ attachments



A. SCHOENHUT.

Reed-Organ Attachment.

Patented Aug.10,1875.

No.l66,635.

W W W N ETERe. FHOTOALITHOGRAPHER WASMMGTON, 0 Cv UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT SCHOENHUT, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN REED-ORGAN ATTACHMENTS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 166,635, dated August 10, 1875; application filed June 16, 1875.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ALBERT SOEOENHUT, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented an Improved Piano Attachment for Organs, of. which the following is a specification The object of my invention is to construct a conpact and simple piano attachment for organs or melodeons; and this object I attain in the manner which I will now proceed to describe, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in Which- Figure 1 is a vertical section of a portion of my improved piano attachment applied to the key-board of an organ, and Fig. 2 a plan View of the same.

The attachment is arranged immediately back of and above the key-board of the organ, and consists of a series of metallic plates, A, arranged a short distance apart from each other, and resting upon the upper edges of partitions Within a sounding-box, B, between which and the plates intervenes a layer of woolen yarn or other yielding material, the plates being retained in position by means of pins a, all as described in my patent of March 25, 1873. The organ-keys D are pivoted to the frame at m, and are provided with rods g which operate the valves in the usual manner, and to the top of each key, near the rear of the same, is attached the outer end of an arm, E, each of which is provided at the rear with two projections, b and d, the former being arranged inside, and the latter outside of the sounding-box B. The projections I) have at their upper ends pads e, on which bear the hammers g, so that when one of the said projections I) is elevated, its hammer will strike one of the plates A, thereby sounding a note. The upper end of each projection d is provided with a loop, h, through which projects the outer end of an elastic rod,-i, secured at the opposite end to the front of the soundingbox, and carrying a disk, j, of felt or other like material, which, when the projection d is lowered, rests upon one of the plates A, and acts as a damper, but which is ele-' vated clear of the plate as long as the key is depressed, and the projection d consequently elevated.

In attachments for organs it is essential that the piano action should admit of being readily thrown out of gear with the action of the organ. This I effect in the manner shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

The stems of the hammers are secured at their inner ends to a pivoted block, F, arranged at the back of the sounding-box, and provided at one end with a crank, m, to which is connected a rod, n, extending through the front of the organ-frame, where it is provided with a suitable knob or handle, by operating which the block F may be made to assume either the position shown by dotted or that indicated by full lines in Fig. 1. When in the position shown by full lines, the hammers g hang loosely, and can be operated by raising the projections 11, but when the block F is moved to the position shown by dotted lines, the hammers are elevated, so as to be beyond the control of said projections.

It will be-observed that the sounding-box B is separated into a central open chamber, 1), and two box-like chambers, r and .9, one on each side, an arrangement which I prefer on account of the improvement in the tone of the plates A which it produces.

One of the main features of my invention is the attachment of the bars E directly to the rear ends of the 0rgan-keys, for by this arrangement the same pin which acts as a fulcrum for the keys serves also as a fulcrum for the bar.

The block F, instead of being applied to all the hammers, may be made in sections, each of which is controlled by an independent red, at, so that any one set of keys can be thrown in or out of gear with the piano attachment without disturbing the others.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination of the organ-key D, the

piano attachment, and bar E, secured to and forming part of the organ-keys, and arranged to operate the piano movement, all as set forth.

2. The combination of the hammers g with the pivoted block F, and mechanism for operating the same, all substantially as set forth.

3. The combination of the spring-rods t and their dampers j with the projections d and their loops h, all as set forth.

4. The sounding-box B, with its central open chamber 19 and box-like chambers r and 8, arranged as set forth, for the purpose specilied.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

Witnesses: ALBERT SOHOENHUT.

HUBERT HoWsoN, HARRY SMITH. 

